


On the top of the world

by Televa



Category: 80 Days (Video Game 2014)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, Light Angst, M/M, Pansexual Character, Secret Relationship, headcanons, the north pole expedition
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-19
Updated: 2017-11-23
Packaged: 2019-01-19 11:20:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12409353
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Televa/pseuds/Televa
Summary: What if everything goes well, and Passepartout & Fogg reach the North Pole just fine? Passepartout enters a relationship with the Finnish Artificer without telling his Master.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> All characters mentioned belong to Inkle as presented. This work of fiction is unbetad, and English isn't my first language. If there are typos, please come forward so I can improve the text.  
> The song I listened to when writing this: /watch?v=CcbiZRMSLYc

If someone had told me a week ago that I would find myself a valet to an Englishman with a course set to the North Pole, I would’ve told them to sleep their intoxication away. Yet, to my own surprise, here I was – watching the ever-white-and-blue scenery of the north go by. My Master and I boarded this Ice Walker four days ago, and so much has happened ever since. My Master has kept mostly to himself in our cabins, but I have seen him talking to the ship crew a few times. I, on the other hand, have managed to befriend most of the crew, and one special Artificer has wormed his way into my heart.

Monsieur Vitti Jokinen. I could talk about him for hours and hours and still find some new things to say.

When we first had met in Smeerenburg, his calm demeanor had intrigued me. My first impression was soon gone as he had quite literally grabbed Monsieur Fogg into a tavern with him and left me standing on the cobblestone street with nothing but the crispy autumn air in my lungs. The next morning Monsieur Fogg declared we would head even norther, and a few funny occurrences later here I am – enjoying a rather romantic lunch alone with Vitti. Eating together has become sort of a habit to us, as lunch time is the only sacred time on the Ice Walker.

“It puts things into a new perspective, Jean. Being utterly surrounded by nothing but ice and cold,” I hear him say behind me. I turn around to see him watching over the glacier. Against the white background his blond hair and beard have a small ginger tint to them. He looks like the most handsome person I’ve ever met.

 _Merde_ , he _is_ the most handsome person I have ever met.

“Indeed,” I say shortly and continue my musings. Being silent with him isn’t awkward like I first thought it would be. Vitti says silence is deeply weaved into Finnish culture, and who am I to disagree him? Being together with him is already enough as it is, and this nub of a relationship we have is more than I ever hoped to dream of. 

“How much time do we have left?” I ask Vitti as I take a few steps to stand next to him. He puts his arm in the small of my back and I instinctively lean closer. It’s scary, in a way, how easily trust comes in a matter of few days. I am content nonetheless, and for me it’s enough. If our journey is to part us and we shall never see again, at least I will have the memory of these rare days when I was truly happy. 

“Enough to savour these minutes with you,” he replies calmly, but I can see him blush slightly. It amazes me how stern and cold-headed Vitti is in his work – yet he has this softer side to him that he shows only in my company. It’s refreshing to be together with someone who so boldly shows emotions, no matter what. I can feel myself fall more in _oh dare I say it?_ love with him. I cannot help a smile as I lean closer and he presses a tender kiss on my temple. We let content silence embrace us once again. It’s just before we have to head back to our respectable duties when Vitti says he has to confess something. 

Just like that the magical moment is gone and dread fills my heart. Is this when he says he’s been just confused and is truly interested in women alone? How will I bear to share this small Ice Walker with him? Is this the end of everything we’ve shared? I’m supposed to be a good valet to one of the respected gentlemen in England, and here I am panicking like a young girl with her first crush. I feel ridiculous! Vitti must notice my agony as he hurries to sooth me. “Please don’t be scared, love, I am not leaving you. I merely wish to tell you about my name. My real name, that is,” he says, his words mumbled against the top my head. Vitti's presence has an ever-calming effect on my soul, and for that I am grateful. I wish I could have the same effect on him, as he clearly steadies himself to say what weights his mind.

”Vitti is actually a nickname I got when I joined the Artificers. The name my parents gave me is Väinämö, but apparently, it’s too difficult to foreigners to pronounce. So, after listening my name being butchered over and over again, my colleagues settled on calling me Vitti.”

 _Dieu soit loué_ , I panicked for nothing, I realize as I release a breath I didn't even notice I held in. I take Vit-… _Väinämö's_ hand in mine and press a soft kiss against his knuckles. It takes me several attempts to say his name right, but he is nothing but patient with my efforts. When I finally pronounce the name right he closes me into a tight embrace and laughs. His happiness over such a simple thing as saying a name right gives me joy, and our smiles haven’t faded as we are once again back under the deck and departing. Väinämö’s beard rubs against my cheek as we kiss goodbye and he disappears into the engine room. I return to tend to my Master’s needs, but my lover’s touch lingers there the whole day. If Monsieur Fogg notices something in my demeanor, he stays silent. Even valets deserve to keep some secrets.


	2. Chapter 2

I thought about _Maman_ today.

I thought about her smile and her laugh when she picked me and my big brother in her arms. I thought about warm spring days in a secluded park near our home, where just the three of us would spend lazy afternoons laying on the grass. We used hours gazing up the sky, and I remember how my brother René swore one day he would be the first Frenchman ever to travel wherever there was beyond our beloved solar system. _Maman_ had laughed and declared that she would give her everything to see our dreams become true. She had been right: hunger for adventure truly was imprinted in our veins.

It is all gone now, though. The Ice Walker has broken. My Master, quite severely injured in the explosions, is fighting for his life, and I can only give him hope. Madame Juho has disappeared, the never-ending snow probably consuming her body, and Väinämö… my poor Väinämö, he hasn’t talked to anyone after the Ice Walker’s destruction even though without his failsafes we would all be long dead. The surviving crew members have been going through their calculations and travelling equipment for the past few hours in the tent next to ours. They are very adamant about finding a way to both get us away from here and live to tell the tale.  
The cold creeps deeper into my bones as the night settles in. Master Fogg is shivering inside the cocoon of blankets I made him. I’ve been forcing him to eat little nibbles of rye bread, but the task becomes more and more demanding with every passing hour. Fogg’s hairline is damp with cold sweat as I run my fingers along it, trying to sooth the pain what little I can. He stirs a little and goes back to sleep straight away and I am once again left alone in my thoughts.

Then Vitti steps inside, jolting me back to this never-ending cold of cold isolation.

The buffalo hide coat is rimed with frost, just like his beard and hair underneath a thick woollen hat. Despite everything that’s happened, he stands tall and intimidating, or so he looks like at least; I can look straight through his stiff demeanor, _I’d be a bad valet and lover if I couldn’t_ , and see he is weary, cold, and fighting exhaustion. I can only offer him the warmest smile and open arms. He takes off the goggles and collapses against me. Vitti opens his long coat and embraces me flush next him. He smells of ice and must and smoke, and for a moment I am warm.

_”Olin kestänyt kaiken_  
_häpeää kestänyt en_  
_jätin taakseni kaupungin valot_  
_ja voittamisen”_

Väinämö’s voice is surprisingly soft and calm as he sings. The words so harsh in my ears roll naturally from his lips, and I feel bad for not knowing a single word in his native tongue. It’s clear the song means a lot to him, what with the amount of emotion he puts in every word. When we get out of this wasteland of ice, I will learn to speak in the language Vitti thinks in. But, for now, I am content with keeping the men of my life close. I swear the cold loses its effect, if only for a little while.

_Ajoin yön yli tänne_  
_jääkylmässä järvessä uin_  
_suorilta jaloilta melkein_  
_vuoteelle kaaduin_

”I am sorry this happened,” I say before Väinämö sings another verse. He closes him mouth and exhales deeply. We are already completely flushed against each other, but somehow, he manages to come even closer. He tightens his grip on my waist as I lean my head against the crook of his neck. I stare focused at my mitten-covered hands, my eyes trailing the cross-stitched patterns. My _aïeule_ made me these mittens when all those years ago, when I still dreamed about international-level gymnastics. What a foolish boy had I been, to get drunk and injure my knee beyond proper healing. _Maman_ had been so sad and disappointed, but _aïeule_ only smiled and hugged me saying that some things were meant to happen. She had been right.

_Älä pelkää, älä pelkää,_  
_sinä et pääse putoamaan_  
_Rakastettu on oikea nimesi_  
_ja tulee nimenäsi olemaan_

There is a long, pregnant silence after my beloved stops singing. The wind pushes through inside our makeshift tent, and I am at loss of words. There is so much I want to say to Vitti, to express my love to him and gratitude of knowing I won’t die alone. Us valets are supposed to be excellent at talking, no matter of the situation, yet here I am. Väinämö’s silence is as deep as mine but suddenly he stands up, exposing me again to the cold. He stays silent as he offers his hand to me, and without a doubt I take it. My Master has enough blankets to keep him warm. Vitti pulls me up standing flush against his chest and soon I’m tightly wrapped inside his coat. The chill leaves my body before it has a proper grip on me.

“Jean, dance with me?”

What else can I do but nod and start to sway us slowly back and forth? Despite the cold wasteland of North Pole outside and the unavoidable death, I would not change this for anything. We lose the track of time, as we dance literally on the top of the world. We kiss, our lips blue from cold wet with Väinämö’s tears. I want to wipe them away, to bring him hope, but I cannot. False hope brings down even the mightiest men. Maybe Madam Juho comes back with a rescue company, maybe she won’t. Nonetheless, I have accepted my fate, no matter how hard it’ll be. Väinämö begins a new song, this one in Finnish too.

_"Viime yö vielä iholla_  
_silmät kiinni sun vieressä_  
_Meetkö pois jos mä kosketan?_  
_Meetkö pois vaikka rakastan?_

_Mä tunnustan: olen outo mies_  
_Vintti pelkkää ulappaa_

_Mä aion olla tässä huomenna_  
_mä aion, älä luovu toivosta_  
_Vaikka välillä oon aivan hukassa_  
_mä tuun sua kohti suuntavaistolla”_

A sudden crash comes from outside followed with loud commotion. We stop our swaying to listen what’s happening only to hear three words over and over again: Ráijá is back.

We are saved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, that's about it. I have some extremely vague ideas of where this story could be going, but at the moment I don't have any time to continue this. I will, though, if people want to read more. Don't be afraid to hit me up!
> 
> P.S. The songs Vitti sang are Rakastettu by Juha Tapio and Suuntavaistolla by Vesterinen yhtyeineen. Both songs can be found on Spotify.

**Author's Note:**

> I've been playing Inkle's 80 days A LOT lately. It's just too much fun to stop, and there are so many ways to finish the game. Vitti's a cool character to write, and I have so many headcanons for his origins that I had to write something with him and Passepartout (and seriously though, there isn't clearly enough fanworks about them). There might be a new chapter in the future. I like this pairing too much to stop here. I think.


End file.
